DnD’s new Forgotten Realm books will finally go beyond the Sword Coast
The Forgotten Realms are the most famous setting for Dungeons & Dragons, popularized by games such as the Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights series, and novels like the Drizzt Do’Urden cycle. The planet of Toril is a vast expanse of different, fantastic territories: the lush jungles of Chult, the intrigue-ridden magocracy of Thay, the windswept deserts of Calimshan, and more. All these regions offer diverse takes on fantasy tropes and some original additions to the genre. However, since the fifth edition of Dungeons & Dragons has been around, the game has mostly focused on one of these regions, much to many players’ dismay: the Sword Coast. Finally, this is about to change.
At Gen Con 2025, Wizards of the Coast unveiled two new D&D books that will be released on Nov. 11: Heroes of Faerûn and Adventures in Faerûn. The former will be a player-specific expansion that will include new subclasses, feats, backgrounds, items, along with new rules for Circle magic, a gazeteer-style guide to the Realms, a guide to the gods of the Realms, and more information about the factions that rule Faerûn. This is great, and I’m sure players can’t wait to dive into the new goodies, but as a forever DM, I’m more excited about Adventures in Faerûn, which is specific for dungeon masters.
What got me most excited about Adventures in Faerûn is that the book will explore five different settings: Baldur’s Gate, Calimshan, the Dalelands, the Moonshae Isles, and Icewind Dale. Each location will also be tailored for a specific style of gameplay: Baldur’s Gate will be the setting for urban fantasy adventures, while Icewind Dale is perfect for survival horror vibes. This is a novel concept, and I am really happy that 5e players can finally get a glimpse at what Faerûn looks like outside the Sword Coast. However, I can’t help but feel disappointed by the fact that two of these locations have already been detailed in dedicated campaign books: Baldur’s Gate in Descent into Avernus and Icewind Dale in Rime of the Frostmaiden.
Still, I’m excited to get the first good glimpse at the Dales, Calimshan, and the Moonshae Isles in more than two decades. The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting, published in 2001 for D&D 3e, was a fantastic book, and it’s still one of my favorite products ever (a sentiment shared by many D&D fans.) It was an ambitious attempt at a comprehensive look at the Realms, and while many locations remained sketched, it was still enough to feed our imagination (and campaigns) for decades. Its 4e equivalent was skipped by many (me included) due to the mess that the Spellplague event was, lore-wise. When most of the changes that cataclysmic event brought were undone with 5e, many players were excited for a “return to form” for the Forgotten Realms. That surely happened, but it was unfortunately limited in scope.
With few exceptions, the majority of D&D 5e products set in the Forgotten Realms focused on the Sword Coast and its adjacent areas. It’s understandable, as that’s where some of the most popular D&D locations exist, including Baldur’s Gate, Waterdeep, and Neverwinter. Still, one of the biggest appeals of this setting, to me, was just how expansive and diverse its world felt. Browsing the pages of the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting as a 14-year-old kid, I had the impression that I was being dragged into a world that felt colorful and unpredictable. Every time I turned a page, new places, stories, characters, and mysteries awaited. Now that I can draw a map of Waterdeep with my eyes closed, I’m ready to feel that excitement again.
There is more going on with Adventures in Faerûn than simply expanding the scope of the Forgotten Realms as shown in 5e. The book includes a whopping 50-plus “pick up and play adventures,” and 37 new monsters and villains. I’ll be jumping straight to the sections on the Dalelands and the Moonshae Isles; the Dales were one of the first locations crafted by Forgotten Realms’ creator Ed Greenwood, and a lot of his early stories were set in these rural communities. (I suggest checking The Knights of Myth Drannor trilogy, named after Greenwood’s home campaign’s adventuring party.) The Moonshae Isles have a strong Celtic vibe which I love, and they are the setting of the first-ever Forgotten Realms novels, The Moonshae Trilogy.
As you may have guessed by now, I’m a huge Forgotten Realms nerd. I appreciated all the products that came out for that setting in 5e, and the strategy of focusing each book on a specific set of locations has surely worked. However, I’m also excited to see those horizons expand. Adventures in Faerûn won’t get close to the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting in terms of scope, but Wizards promises it will be, along with its companion book, “The most expansive take on the Forgotten Realms in Dungeons & Dragons history.” That’s a bold statement, and I hope these products will live up to it.
Heroes of Faerûn and Adventures in Faerûn will be released on Nov. 11, 2025. The products are available for preorder now.